Review: City of Heavenly Fire

Title:  City of Heavenly Fire
Series:  The Mortal Instruments #6
Author:  Cassandra Clare (Website | Twitter)
Age Group:  Young Adult
Publication Date:  May 27, 2014 by Margaret K. McElderry
Source:  Bought

In this dazzling and long-awaited conclusion to the acclaimed Mortal Instruments series, Clary and her friends fight the greatest evil they have ever faced: Clary's own brother.
Sebastian Morgenstern is on the move, systematically turning Shadowhunter against Shadowhunter. Bearing the Infernal Cup, he transforms Shadowhunters into creatures out of nightmare, tearing apart families and lovers as the ranks of his Endarkened army swell.
The embattled Shadowhunters withdraw to Idris - but not even the famed demon towers of Alicante can keep Sebastian at bay. And with the Nephilim trapped in Idris, who will guard the world against demons?
When one of the greatest betrayals the Nephilim have ever known is revealed, Clary, Jace, Isabelle, Simon, and Alec must flee - even if their journey takes them deep into the demon realms, where no Shadowhunter has set foot before, and from which no human being has ever returned...
Love will be sacrificed and lives lost in the terrible battle for the fate of the word in the thrilling final installment of the classic urban fantasy series The Mortal Instruments!

 Find City of Heavenly Fire online

Barnes & Noble | Amazon | Goodreads

*Mild Spoilers for the previous Mortal Instrument books and The Infernal Devices*

My Review:  By the Angel, this review is hard to write.  I honestly don't even know how to start.  This series has been a part of my life for so long that I can't believe it's over.  I procrastinated so hard with this book.  It was sitting on my shelf staring at me for a good month before I gathered up the courage to start it.  I thought I could just live in denial and never leave these characters and this story but I was too curious - I needed to know what happened.  

Just like in all previous Cassandra Clare books, the character continued to hold my heart.  I love this cast so hard.  Jace, Clary, Simon, Izzy, Magnus, even Alec.  I couldn't get enough of them.  They have all grown so much since the first book - especially Jace.  His maturity in this installment was a pleasant surprise.  I'm so used to having him hold in his emotions until they disastrously explode all over everything.  Having him actually be up front and honest about things was a refreshing change.  Clary was also amazing.  It was so awesome seeing her kick butt in this book!  Her maturity this time around was such a relief and very believable.  We even got introduced to the main characters in Cassie's next series, The Dark Artifices.  I already love them!  

The action was, unsurprisingly, kick ass.  Cassie Clare has a way of making it feel like you're right there with the characters as you're reading, especially in the fight scenes.  I get really stressed out during those fights!  I was constantly on edge, waiting for something terrible to happen and ruin everything.  Because, really, when does that not happen for this group of characters?  Every scene was high-stakes and thrilling. 

I loved how well this book tied in with The Infernal Devices.  Every single time the characters were mentioned from TID, I cried.  Not even lying, just the mention of Will and Tessa and Jem was like a punch in the stomach.  Just thinking about it now, I'm tearing up.  THIS IS WHAT YOU DO TO ME, CASSIE CLARE.  THIS IS WHAT YOU DO.  

City of Heavenly Fire was honestly not at all what expected but I loved it all the same.  Some of it was bittersweet but for the most part, I was left feeling satisfied and with a smile and waterfalls of tears on my face.  The conclusion to The Mortal Instruments series will not disappoint.  It is the perfect ending to a beautiful series and I'm anxious to get my hands on the next Cassandra Clare novel.  

“We are all the pieces of what we remember. We hold in ourselves the hopes and fears of those who love us. As long as there is love and memory, there is no true loss.” 

Five Cards

The Warrior Release Day Blast!

Entangled Teen is so excited to announce the release of The Warrior, the third and final installment in the Dante Walker trilogy, which readers are already raving about!

Title:  The Warrior
Series:  A Dante Walker Novel #3
Author:  Victoria Scott
Age Group:  Young Adult
Published:  May 6, 2014 by Entangled Teen

 War between heaven and hell is coming, but Dante Walker makes it look damn good.

Dante’s girlfriend, Charlie, is fated to save the world. And Aspen, the girl who feels like a sister, is an ordained soldier. In order to help both fulfill their destiny and win the war, Dante must complete liberator training at the Hive, rescue Aspen from hell, and uncover a message hidden on an ancient scroll.

Dante is built for battle, but even he can’t handle the nightmares where spiders crawl from Aspen’s eyes, or the look on Charlie’s face that foretells of devastation. To make matters worse, the enemy seizes every opportunity to break inside the Hive and cripple the liberators. But the day of reckoning is fast approaching, and to stand victorious, Dante will have to embrace something inside himself he never has before—faith.

 Find The Warrior online

Amazon ~ Barnes and Noble ~ Goodreads 

I know that I am absolutely so excited to finally be able to read this book!  I've been with this series from the beginning (just like many of you reading this, I'm sure :) ) and it's so surreal that it's actually coming to a close.  I can't wait to see what's in store for Dante, Charlie, and Aspen. 

About Victoria Scott

 Victoria Scott is a teen fiction writer represented by Sara Crowe. She's the author of the FIRE & FLOOD series published by Scholastic, and the DANTE WALKER trilogy published by Entangled Teen. Her books have been bought and translated in eleven foreign markets including the UK, Turkey, China, Poland, Germany, Australia, Israel, Taiwan, Brazil, New Zealand, and the Netherlands.

Victoria lives in Dallas with her husband and hearts cotton candy something fierce.

 Find Victoria online

Website ~ Goodreads ~ Facebook ~ Twitter

 

 

Review: World After

Title:  World After
Series:  Penryn & the End of Days #2
Author:  Susan Ee
Age Group:  Young Adult
Published:  November 19, 2013 by Skyscape
Source:  Bought

In this sequel to the bestselling fantasy thriller, Angelfall, the survivors of the angel apocalypse begin to scrape back together what's left of the modern world.

When a group of people capture Penryn's sister Paige, thinking she's a monster, the situation ends in a massacre. Paige disappears. Humans are terrified. Mom is heartbroken.

Penryn drives through the streets of San Francisco looking for Paige. Why are the streets so empty? Where is everybody? Her search leads her into the heart of the angels' secret plans where she catches a glimpse of their motivations, and learns the horrifying extent to which the angels are willing to go.

Meanwhile, Raffe hunts for his wings. Without them, he can't rejoin the angels, can't take his rightful place as one of their leaders. When faced with recapturing his wings or helping Penryn survive, which will he choose?

My Review:  I actually was avoiding reading this book for the longest time.  I've have it sitting on my shelf since Christmas and I was so afraid to pick it up because I had heard that Raffe wouldn't be in it much!  A lot of times, when the hero in a series is away for a while, it can make the book a little less interesting for me because I'm so anxious for him to come back that I can hardly pay attention to what's going on.  Even though Raffe wasn't in this book as much as the he had been in the previous one, I am happy to say that I enjoyed it very much!

We start off nearly exactly where we left off in the previous installment: everyone thinks that Penryn is dead.  That first scene set off the tone for the rest of the book; it was filled with intensity and tension and sprinkled with some much appreciated and well done humor!  While reading, I found myself cringing one moment at the chill-worthy situations and descriptions and then laughing out loud the next because of something Penryn said or thought.  Her wit and humor made this post apocalyptic novel all the better!  Without it, this story would be very dreary, sad, and creepy.  I mean, it's still sad and creepy but it's also funny and fun to read.  

Penryn is absolutely amazing.  Seriously, one of my favorite protagonists.  She is just so easy to relate to!  I could see myself doing similar things if I were in her situation (fingers crossed that never happens).  She was both brave and scared.  She showed tremendous courage when dealing with the evil angels, the monster mutations, and even her sister.  But she wasn't so infallible that we weren't able to see that she had her weaknesses.  She wasn't perfect and she was definitely terrified at times but she loved her family enough that she wasn't going to stop for anything.  While we didn't see Raffe much, we did see his sword quite a bit!  I loved his sword.  It became a character itself as it went on this journey with Penryn and that was really awesome!  What we did see of Raffe made me love him all the more!  We definitely saw a different side of him in this novel and uncovering this new layer of him and his past was so interesting.  I'm excited to learn more about him and see the way his character grows and changes in the coming books.

The plot was just as intense and terrifying it was in the first book!  The situations Penryn is thrown into are scary and creepy; a lot of times, I felt like I was having a heart attack while I read.  I was anxious the entire time, dreading all of the bad things I knew could possible and probably would happen.  

World After was a home run sequel!  It had bone chilling imagery, high stakes situations, and characters that felt real and were three dimensional.  I do hope Raffe is in the next novel more, though!  I can't say I regret waiting so long to start reading this book because at least now the release date for the third installment is closer!

Four Cards

Waiting on Wednesday #41

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine.  It's where we share the upcoming releases we're most eagerly anticipating and can't wait to get our hands on!  This week . . .  

Title:  The Warrior
Series:  A Dante Walker Novel #3
Author:  Victoria Scott
Age Group:  Young Adult
Publisher:  Entangled Teen
Release Date:  May 6, 2014

War between heaven and hell is coming, but Dante Walker makes it look damn good.

Dante’s girlfriend, Charlie, is fated to save the world. And Aspen, the girl who feels like a sister, is an ordained soldier. In order to help both fulfill their destiny and win the war, Dante must complete liberator training at the Hive, rescue Aspen from hell, and uncover a message hidden on an ancient scroll.

Dante is built for battle, but even he can’t handle the nightmares where spiders crawl from Aspen’s eyes, or the look on Charlie’s face that foretells of devastation. To make matters worse, the enemy seizes every opportunity to break inside the Hive and cripple the liberators. But the day of reckoning is fast approaching, and to stand victorious, Dante will have to embrace something inside himself he never has before—faith. 

Why I'm waiting on The Warrior:  I absolutely adore everything that Victoria Scott has written and this is the last novel in the first series of hers.  I am so excited to see what happens to these characters that I love and I'm totally ready to get my next Dante Walker fix.  That guy is just too addicting!

What are you waiting on this Wednesday?

Leave your links in the comments below and I'll be sure to check out your post!

 

Review: The Liberator

Title:  The Liberator
Series:  Dante Walker #2
Author:  Victoria Scott
Published:  August 27, 2013 by Entangled Teen
Source:  Bought

Bad boy, meet bad girl.

Dante has a shiny new cuff wrapped around his ankle, and he doesn't like that mess one bit. His new accessory comes straight from Big Guy himself and marks the former demon as a liberator. Despite his gritty past and bad boy ways, Dante Walker has been granted a second chance.

When Dante is given his first mission as a liberator to save the soul of seventeen-year-old Aspen, he knows he’s got this. But Aspen reminds him of the rebellious life he used to live and is making it difficult to resist sinful temptations. Though Dante is committed to living clean for his girlfriend Charlie, this dude’s been a playboy for far too long…and old demons die hard.

With Charlie becoming the girl she was never able to be pre-makeover and Aspen showing him how delicious it feels to embrace his inner beast, Dante will have to go somewhere he never thought he’d return to in order to accomplish the impossible: save the girl he’s been assigned to, and keep the girl he loves.

My Review:  Well holy cow.  This book completely blew my mind.  It might possibly have been better than the first book which is saying something.  In fact, I think it was better.  I was really nervous going into it after reading the blurb.  Another girl?  Was this going to turn into a love triangle?  Well, fear not love-triangle-haters because that is not the case in this book!  Victoria Scott completely blew me away with this stunningly done sequel!

I loved falling back into Dante Walker's world.  This guy has got me hooked and I am utterly thrilled to be!  He's a bad boy, a rebel, witty, stubborn, strong, and arrogant.  And I just can't get enough.  Half the time I'm torn between wanting to slap him and wanting to hug him.  Mostly hug him, though.  All of the layers he has are amazing.  Under that tough exterior, there's such a softy and it was a lot of fun having the opportunity to delve deeper into who he is and why he is the way he is.  Also, I loved seeing him react to all the new people around.  He is so fiercely loyal to his friends and those he loves.  The more I learn about him, the more I love him!

The other characters were all absolutely fantastic.  Charlie had a lot of layers to uncover in this book, too and I liked seeing those peeled away.  She showed many different sides and I liked that.  It gave us a better sense of exactly who she is.  I went into this book thinking I wouldn't like Aspen.  I was afraid she was going to try to get at Dante but that was not the case.  Their relationship was not at all romantic but it was still just as lovely and strong as his and Charlie's.  All the other characters were amazing.  They jumped off the page and kept the story alive and super interesting.  It was a blast seeing all of them in action and having them work together.  

The plot was amazing.  It kept me engaged the entire time and I was completely engulfed in the story and the action and all of the twists we went through.  The last half of the book especially took off.  It was one surprise after another and I loved it.  There was never a boring moment and I was so anxious to figure out what was going to happen next.  And after that ending....man, I just need the next book now.  As in right now.  As in three seconds ago.  Gimme.  Please?  Another knockout book by Victoria Scott.  Pow!

 Five Cards

Review: Fall From Grace

Title:  Fall From Grace
Series:  Mad World #1
Author:  Christine Zolendz
Published:  July 22, 2012 by DarkRoadDesigns
Source:  Bought

I'm finally home after struggling through my brother's illness and death. But, home is definitely a bit different. My best friend (the only person alive now that knows my secret) has a new boyfriend; and he has a friend. Shane Maxton: bad boy, tattooed rock god, eye candy extraordinaire. He is also New York City's most arrogant, self-serving, son of a, well, a definite one-night stand kind of a guy.

But, it doesn't matter to me because I've spent my existence looking for the love of my life, my angel. And, there is nothing that Shane Maxton can do to change that.

A paranormal romance.

My Review (mild spoilers):  I had high hopes going into this one because there was a huge amount of five star review of it on goodreads.  It sounded like it had an interesting premise and people we obviously loving it.  Unfortunately, I did not feel the same. 

 The first problem I had with this book was the confusion.  For a good half of this book, I had no idea what was going on.  I knew what was happening but I didn't know why it was happening.  I knew it had something to do with Grace's extraordinarily long past but we were kept in the dark for a long time as to why it was significant to what Grace was doing and what, exactly, Grace was.  It was annoying to be kept confused about this aspect of the book.  I felt it was needed for us to know exactly what was going on before just being thrust onto the Team Grace Train.  I just couldn't get behind her because I didn't know exactly why we were working toward what we were.  

Also, I just really did not like the characters at all.  It all felt very much like a soap opera to me.  Everything was over dramatized and the characters were all way too sensitive.  Plus, Grace was just plain stupid.  I'm sorry to say that but really.  For however long she's supposedly been alive, it seems like she hasn't learned anything.  *Upcoming Spoilers*  I mean, the entire time she had been looking for a pair of blue eyes and Shane had blue eyes and for some reason, she decided to completely ignore that fact.  Instead, she pushed him away until the next dude came along with another pair of blue eyes and she completely fell for him without another thought.  I MEAN, REALLY.  *End of Spoilers*  I just don't understand her logic in some of the situations she was put in.  

The other characters were either bland or irritating.  Except for Shane.  I didn't mind him too much until he started acting all sensitive and butt hurt over nothing.  Dude, yes she is going to call you out on being a playboy.  You are a playboy.  Don't go running off crying when she points that out and doesn't want to get with you because of it.  

I was sad that the paranormal aspect wasn't brought into this book until the very end because that was actually pretty interesting.  It was a unique take of the whole angel thing and this book would have been a lot better in my eyes had we seen more of it.  I doubt I'll pick up the next book in this series but hey, you never know.  I am a little curious to see how this all pans out. 

Two Cards

Review: Angelfall

Title:  Angelfall
Series:  Penryn & the End of Days #1
Author:  Susan Ee
Publisher:  Feral Dream
Pages:  282
Format:  Paperback
Source:  Bought

It's been six weeks since angels of the apocalypse descended to demolish the modern world. Street gangs rule the day while fear and superstition rule the night. When warrior angels fly away with a helpless little girl, her seventeen-year-old sister Penryn will do anything to get her back.

Anything, including making a deal with an enemy angel.

Raffe is a warrior who lies broken and wingless on the street. After eons of fighting his own battles, he finds himself being rescued from a desperate situation by a half-starved teenage girl.

Traveling through a dark and twisted Northern California, they have only each other to rely on for survival. Together, they journey toward the angels' stronghold in San Francisco where she'll risk everything to rescue her sister and he'll put himself at the mercy of his greatest enemies for the chance to be made whole again.

My Review:  I knew this book was going to be good but I had no idea it would be this absolutely epic.  It kept me up late into the night reading, flipping through the pages to find out what was going to happen next.  There were so many different elements that all came together beautifully and made this book so memorable.  

We're thrust right into the action from the very first page.  I loved the immediate thrill I felt when I began reading.  It was so awesome to see Penryn in a situation like that right away and it made it easy to really get a feel for who she is and what her goals are.  She's had to take care of her mom and her sister for a long time and now the only difference is that she has to take care of them while also dealing with the murderous, evil angels who are trying to take over the world.  We see a lot of strength in her from early on and also see how much she loves her family.  She's extremely loyal and I really loved that about her.  I also loved how she was able to take care of herself.  Those fighting lessons really paid off...

Raffe was a lot of fun to decipher.  I loved his lines (“My friends call me Wrath,” says Raffe. “My enemies call me Please Have Mercy. What’s your name, soldier boy?" I loved that one) and the way he kept himself a mystery.  I was constantly on my toes, wondering what he was going to do next.  Sometimes he seemed like an ally and other times he was the enemy.  It made their relationship interesting and hard to trust at times but always very exciting.

Also, I completely adore Penryn's mom.  She added an extra layer of uniqueness to this book that I fell absolutely in love with.  All of those little things she did and the "clues" she left were exciting but also very strange and creepy.  I still really love her though!

What we learned about the angels and what was actually going on was completely mind blowing to me.  I really hadn't thought something like that would be what was happening but I'm excited to see where it takes us in the next book.  Especially after that ending.  So much happened toward the end!  Everything has sort of shifted and it's hard to figure out what's going to come next.  But that only makes me more anxious to get my hands on the next book!  

Five Cards

Review: City of Bones

Title:  City of Bones
Series:  The Mortal Instruments #1
Author:  Cassandra Clare
Publisher:  Margaret K. McElderry Books
Pages:  448
Format:  Paperback
Source:  Bought

When fifteen-year-old Clary Fray heads out to the Pandemonium Club in New York City, she hardly expects to witness a murder -- much less a murder committed by three teenagers covered with strange tattoos and brandishing bizarre weapons. Then the body disappears into thin air. It's hard to call the police when the murderers are invisible to everyone else and when there is nothing -- not even a smear of blood -- to show that a boy has died. Or was he a boy?

This is Clary's first meeting with the Shadowhunters, warriors dedicated to ridding the earth of demons. It's also her first encounter with Jace, a Shadowhunter who looks a little like an angel and acts a lot like a jerk. Within twenty-four hours Clary is pulled into Jace's world with a vengeance, when her mother disappears and Clary herself is attacked by a demon. But why would demons be interested in ordinary mundanes like Clary and her mother? And how did Clary suddenly get the Sight? The Shadowhunters would like to know. . . .

Exotic and gritty, exhilarating and utterly gripping, Cassandra Clare's ferociously entertaining fantasy takes readers on a wild ride that they will never want to end.

My Review:  This wasn't my first time reading this book but it seems that no matter how many times I revisit these pages, the magic is always the same as the first time I opened the cover.  I'm hooked from the very beginning and glued to the pages, falling in love with both the world and the characters.  Everything is always so vivid and realistic, it's as though I'm in the Shadow World with Clary and Jace!

I felt like I was watching a movie while reading this.  The descriptions and the writing style made it so easy to picture exactly what was happening in my head.  Everything flowed so smoothly and made sense.  Though it did take a while to catch on to all the new phrases and words we had to learn, that didn't bother me much.  We were given a lot of detail and sometimes it was hard to sort through but by the middle of the book, it was pretty easy to follow everything.  

I liked the characters a lot!  I thought they were all three dimensional and deep.  They all had their own back stories that were interesting and fun to learn about.  Sometimes some of them got a little annoying *cough* Clary *cough* but the other characters made up for it.  I especially enjoyed the dialogue between them all.  I thought it was fun and interesting and it had me laughing out loud at points. 

The overall plot was really great.  I was at the edge of my seat, eyes glued to the page.  There wasn't any boring moments that I can remember.  I enjoyed all of the action and the fights!  Those scenes were wonderfully written especially.  So easy to follow and visualize what was happening. 

City of Bones is definitely going down as a favorite in my book.  It's a story that will keep you up at night, wondering what will happen next!  The characters were amazing and the descriptions and little details made this story pop from the pages.  If you've yet to pick this one up, you must!  

Five Cards

 

Waiting on Wednesday (22)

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine.  It's where we share the upcoming releases we're most eagerly anticipating and can't wait to get our hands on! 
This week . . .

Title:  The Liberator
Series:  Dante Walker #2
Author:  Victoria Scott
Publisher:  Entangled Teen
Pages:  350
Release Date:  August 27, 2013

Bad boy, meet bad girl.

Dante has a shiny new cuff wrapped around his ankle, and he doesn't like that mess one bit. His new accessory comes straight from Big Guy himself and marks the former demon as a liberator. Despite his gritty past and bad boy ways, Dante Walker has been granted a second chance.

When Dante is given his first mission as a liberator to save the soul of seventeen-year-old Aspen, he knows he’s got this. But Aspen reminds him of the rebellious life he used to live and is making it difficult to resist sinful temptations. Though Dante is committed to living clean for his girlfriend Charlie, this dude’s been a playboy for far too long…and old demons die hard.

With Charlie becoming the girl she was never able to be pre-makeover and Aspen showing him how delicious it feels to embrace his inner beast, Dante will have to go somewhere he never thought he’d return to in order to accomplish the impossible: save the girl he’s been assigned to, and keep the girl he loves.

Why I'm waiting on The Liberator:  More Dante?  Yes, please.  I'm rooting for that 110%.  I adored the first book and fell head over heels in love with Mr. Dante Walker.  I'm more than a little excited to get to see more of him.  And this new girls seems interesting.  If we thought Dante was bad before, I can't wait to see what sort of trouble he gets into with Aspen . . . 

What are you waiting on this Wednesday?

 P.S. Don't forget to enter the giveaway I'm hosting in celebration of my One Year Blogiversary!  Up for grabs?  Seven awesome books and a $15 dollar gift card to Barnes & Noble! 
You can enter here.

Review: Sweet Peril

Title:  Sweet Peril
Series:  The Sweet Trilogy #2
Author:  Wendy Higgins
Publisher:  HarperTeen
Pages:  371
Format:  Paperback
Source:  Bought

Anna Whitt, the daughter of a guardian angel and a demon, promised herself she’d never do the work of her father—polluting souls. She’d been naive to make such a vow. She’d been naive about a lot of things.

Haunted by demon whisperers, Anna does whatever she can to survive, even if it means embracing her dark side and earning an unwanted reputation as her school’s party girl. Her life has never looked more bleak. And all the while there’s Kaidan Rowe, son of the Duke of Lust, plaguing her heart and mind.

When an unexpected lost message from the angels surfaces, Anna finds herself traveling the globe with Kopano, son of Wrath, in an attempt to gain support of fellow Nephilim and give them hope for the first time. It soon becomes clear that whatever freedoms Anna and the rest of the Neph are hoping to win will not be gained without a fight. Until then, Anna and Kaidan must put aside the issues between them, overcome the steamiest of temptations yet, and face the ultimate question: is loving someone worth risking their life?

My Review:  This was one of my most anticipated reads of the entire year.  I fell absolutely in love with Sweet Evil, the first book in the series, and could not wait to see where we went with this one.  I'm happy to report that Sweet Peril was just as amazing as the first!  

I was really interested to see where Anna was now that she was been introduced to this world of demons and angels.  Her entire world changed and, as a result, so did she.  It was a little sad to see how her innocence had been washed away by the harshness of her new reality but it was all very realistic.  Anna had to change to survive.  And while it was sad to see that shift, it was also very exciting.  She was really able to hold her own in this book!  It was so awesome seeing the way the other Neph reacted when this new, badass version of Anna walked up.  It was especially fun to see Kaidan's reaction!  

Speaking of Kai . . . 

Holy freaking crap, I love this guy.  I mean, I loved him in the first book but I love him after reading this one!  It was so awesome to see a different, softer side of him and I just wanted to pull him into a hug and never let go!  He's such a sweet guy and it just completely pisses me off that he's forced to do these things he doesn't want to do because of the stupid Dukes.  While I may like this teddy bear side of him, I also really adore the tougher, bad guy thing he has going, too.  I was thrilled to see these two sides of him meshing and molding together. 

The plot was pretty dark but it held onto its fun and humor.  It was interesting to see the other Nephs (ones we've met and ones we haven't.)  They all come from different parts of the world and have different things to deal with.  I really enjoyed seeing all of these very different people come together under a common goal.  It's so hard to see the way they've lived for their entire lives.  Basically being used and abused by their fathers as a means of entertainment.  I loved all of these characters and to know that they are being hurt really makes me want to kick the Dukes in the shins.  

The overall concept and story was so awesome.  I thoroughly enjoyed every moment of reading this!  I didn't want it to end.  Now that it has, I'm eagerly awaiting the third book in the series.  I need me some more Kai!  And I also really want to see what happens to Anna and the rest of the gang! 

Five Cards

Review: The Collector

Title:  The Collector
Series:  A Dante Walker Novel #1
Author:  Victoria Scott
Publisher:  Entangled Teen
Pages:  352
Format:  eBook
Source:  Bought

He makes good girls...bad.

Dante Walker is flippin’ awesome, and he knows it. His good looks, killer charm, and stellar confidence have made him one of hell’s best—a soul collector. His job is simple: weed through humanity and label those round rears with a big red good or bad stamp. Old Saint Nick gets the good guys, and he gets the fun ones. Bag-and-tag.

Sealing souls is nothing personal. Dante’s an equal-opportunity collector and doesn't want it any other way. But he’ll have to adjust, because Boss Man has given him a new assignment:

Collect Charlie Cooper’s soul within ten days.

Dante doesn't know why Boss Man wants Charlie, nor does he care. This assignment means only one thing to him, and that’s a permanent ticket out of hell. But after Dante meets the quirky Nerd Alert chick he’s come to collect, he realizes this assignment will test his abilities as a collector…and uncover emotions deeply buried.

My Review:  If you haven't noticed . . . I've been a bit excited for this book.  You know *cough* just a bit.  It sounded so good.  Cocky bad boy, hilarious "voice", and a girl that may make him question everything he's grown to accept?  Count me in.  This sounded like exactly the type of book I would enjoy. 

And enjoy I did.  I fell in love from page one, even though it might have been a bit of a love-to-hate-Dante thing at first.  He was such a jerk and I just wanted to kick him in the shin and hide his favorite shoes.  The way he looked down on everyone around him made me go insane.  But, luckily, he redeemed himself quickly.  We see that there's more to him than meets the eye and I liked those softer parts of him we got to see until the jerk part beat it down again.  There's a sweet guy buried under all that swagger and the rock hard wall he's built up around him.  Don't get me wrong, I still seriously enjoyed the badass, sarcastic, cocky guy he was the majority of the time.  He grew on me quickly and I found myself smiling crazily while I read parts of him sticking up for Charlie and going all demon protector for her on "the mean kids".  

Charlie . . . man, I love this girl.  She's so sweet and nice and it really was upsetting to see the way she changed so drastically in this story.  She's not immune to Dante's influence and it was hard to see the way she was affected.  Still, she kept hold of who she really is and I'm glad to see that - despite the changes that did happen to her - she stayed herself at heart.  

The plot was really fun.  It was so cool to see the way Dante strung Charlie along and got her to go on some adventures.  It was also awesome seeing Charlie do the same thing to Dante.  Dante wasn't entirely unaffected by Charlie, either, and it was so sweet seeing the way his character developed and grew as we made our way through the story.  The writing style was so great.  I was laughing out loud every other page.  Dante is so freaking funny and I thoroughly enjoyed reading from his point of view.  I need more Dante in my life - stat!  

There is so much that is right in this book - the characters, the concept, the plot, the writing style all made it as amazing as it is.  I can definitely see myself coming back to reread this book.  I'm already eagerly waiting for the sequel (yes, it's a series.  Thank the Lord because I wouldn't be able to survive without more Dante). 

Five Cards

Review: Clockwork Princess

Title:  Clockwork Princess
Series:  The Infernal Devices
Author:  Cassandra Clare
Publisher:  Margaret K. McElderry Books
Pages:  568
Format:  Hardcover
Source:  Bought

Danger and betrayal, secrets and enchantment in the breathtaking conclusion to the Infernal Devices trilogy.

Tessa Gray should be happy - aren't all brides happy?
Yet as she prepares for her wedding, a net of shadows begins to tighten around the Shadowhunters of the London Institute.
A new demon appears, one linked by blood and secrecy to Mortmain, the man who plans to use his army of pitiless automatons, the Infernal Devices, to destroy the Shadowhunters. Mortmain needs only one last item to complete his plan. He needs Tessa. And Jem and Will, the boys who lay equal claim to Tessa's heart, will do anything to save her.

My Review:  So.  Many.  Tears.  So many tears were shed while I read this book.  It's always painful when ending a series but turning the last page in this one hurt so badly.  I love all of these characters so much and enjoy every single moment I have with them.  To know that I won't get another chance to experience more adventures with them is so sad.  

Even with all of the pain, I really loved this book so much.  I think this was the best in the series.  So much was discovered and all the loose ends were tied up.  It was so satisfying to finally have everything laid out.  All of these questions that we've been trying to figure out since the very first book were answered and wrapped up into neat little packages.  I was amazed at how well everything came together.  It's impressive that Cassandra Clare didn't let anything slip between her fingers.  

I loved all the characters, even the ones that may not be considered "main characters".  They all held their own throughout the book and had their own strong personalities.  They complimented each other so well and I thought they made a wonderful team.  Of course, I adored Will, Tessa, and Jem.  I thought it was beautiful seeing their relationship more in depth, especially Will and Jem's.  The parabati bond was so strong and amazing and I just really loved seeing more of them together.  And the way the three of them worked past what was going on between them and how that relationship came together made me so happy!  I was happy dancing and squealing and everyone was looking at me weird but I didn't even care.  

Everything ended exactly how I wanted it to, even though the epilogue was a huge twist.  I hadn't expected that to happen and while I was a little unsure of it at first, I feel like that's really the only way things could have gone.  It was amazing and painful and an experience I don't regret in the slightest.  This book was an awesome end to an awesome series.  If you have yet to pick it up, I don't know what you're thinking.  You won't regret it!

Five Cards